Library

Fact sheet providing an overview of the FEMA document Wind Retrofit Guide for Residential Buildings.

Report summarizing the requirements to strenghthen new homes against property damage caused by high wind occurrences per the IBHS Fortified Homes High Wind Standard for New Homes.

Fact sheet summarizing the changes to the flood provisions in the 2012 I-Codes that appear in the 2015 edition.

Florida building code including all the amendments and additions by Florida for the wind-borne debris regions and the high-velocity hurricane zone.

2018 edition of code establishing minimum regulations for mechanical systems, including heating, cooling, ventilation, exhaust, ducts, fireplaces, combustion and hydronic systems, using prescriptive and performance-related provisions.

Report summarizing the requirements for strenghtening and protecting the roof, openings in the house, and creating a continuous load path to strengthen walls and foundation per the IBHS Fortified Homes Hurricane Standard for New Homes.

Guide describing the requirements by FORTIFIED Home™ for improving the home's resistance in severe thunderstorms, straight-line wind events, and high winds at the outer edges of tornadoes.

Guide describing the requirements by FORTIFIED Home™ for improving the home's resistance in severe thunderstorms, straight-line wind events, and high winds at the outer edges of tornadoes.

A presentation on the 2020 State Mechanical Code for easier understanding.

Guidebook covering basic principles and data used in the HVAC&R industry. This is the 2023 edition of the handbook, which can be purchased physically or digitally at the reference link in versions using either I-P units of measurement or SI units of measurement.

Article describing products that can enhance the efficiency and safety of clothes dryer vents.

Article from the Sierra Club explaining 5 steps to take to ensure your home's resistance to wildfires, including site maintenance and roof construction guidelines.

Article describing methods for venting a vented attic and a roof assembly over an unvented attic.

Report describing the results of a field study of five different ventilation system types in 29 homes in the Pacific Northwest.

Paper discussing innovative strategies for improving ventilation systems in high-rise apartment buildings, focusing on compartmentalization and controlling stack effect pressures to enhance indoor air quality and energy efficiency published in the Proceedings of the Eighth Conference on Building...

Guide developed to help contractors, building operators, and city officials successfully adopt cool roof and pavement technology.

Report describing how changing the air exchange rate of a home (the sum of the infiltration and mechanical ventilation airflow rates) affects the annual thermal conditioning energy.

Energy Star web page providing guidance on attic ventilation.

The manual covers residential zoning issues - multiple, single-zone, and central multi-zone systems - and includes advice on working with homeowners to adapt the heating or cooling system design to meet modern home design features.

Website providing research, efficiency and safety standards development, and advocacy to the home appliance industry to bring efficient, high-performing home appliances to consumers.

Website reporting efficiencies for dehumidifiers, room air conditioners, and room air cleaners that are tested by independent laboratories and reported by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers.

Manual describing best practices or home construction in Alaska and northern climates.

Standard covering updates to the expected leakage rates for ductwork constructed to the SMACNA HVAC Duct Construction Standards—Metal & Flexible, duct leakage test procedures; includes recommendations on use of leakage testing, types of test apparatus, and test setup and sample leakage analysis.

A publication highlighting recommendations that contribute to improved overall performance in the structural shell and focus on good connection details to tie together exterior walls, roofs and floors.

Report describing a field investigation of failure rates of whole-house mechanical ventilation systems installed in Florida homes.

Webpage providing mapping tool for obtaining ground snow load, based on ASCE 7-10, for any location in the contiguous United States, with the exception of locations requiring a case study due to extreme local variations in ground snow loads. Fee required for some data.

Technical fact sheet describing ways to construct asphalt shingle roofs to be more resistant to high winds and hurricanes; also published in FEMA P-499 “Home Builder’s Guide to Coastal Construction: Technical Fact Sheet Series.”

The exhaust from residential combustion appliances contains air pollutants and high levels of moisture that must be conveyed to the outdoors to maintain acceptable indoor quality.

Technical report describing the evaluation of air management systems in a high-rise apartment building in Toronto, Ontario, focusing on air leakage, suite depressurization, and the performance of in-suite exhaust and corridor ventilation systems.

Standard establishing test methods for determining air leakage in duct systems using fan pressurization in low-rise residential and commercial buildings.

Articles describing attic and ceiling insulation, including mentions of baffles with protect insulation from wind washing.

Web page describing the benefits of attic fans, with rules for sizing fans and intake vents.

Blog article discussing pros and cons of attic ventilation fans.

Article by the Canadian Government on attic ventilation and considerations for moisture and ice dams.

Technical article describing issues and moisture concerns related to weatherization efforts.

SPFA website signup page to access SPFA documents.

Article from California Earthquake Authority on the benefits of retrofitting homes to withstand earthquake forces, with a focus on foundations, walls, and chimneys.

Article describing the common ventilation system types, issues, and solutions in New York City's multifamily residential buildings to improve indoor air quality, occupant health, and building durability.

Report providing water management details for roof assemblies.

Presentation describing details for installing structural insulated panels (SIPs).

Report comparing a variety of roof insulating strategies to present their advantages and disadvantages according to several comparison criteria.

Article describing the control layers (air, thermal, and vapor barriers) needed to build homes successfully in very cold locations.

Document containing recommendations on how to brace roofs and gable end walls based on lessons learned from analyzing the destruction from hurricane Andrew.

An article discussing how different metal roof materials and attachment methods affect the ability of the roof to thermally expand and contract and the durability of different solutions.

ENRGY STAR webpage discussing the basics of certified ceiling fans.

Information sheet with information about insulating and ventilating attics.

News article from SFGate explaining and giving figures on how chimney failure is the most common type of damage to homes during an earthquake.

Study investigating measured cooling energy performance in side-by-side identical homes with varying roof types, including cool roof technologies.

Manual assisting architects, engineers, owners and roofing contractors for designing, specifying and installing roof tiles in areas of snow and ice.

Installation manual describing proper installation practices, industry standards and the code requirements of roofing tiles.